Disquiet
Etymology
An English formation from the prefix “dis-” (marking reversal or absence) and “quiet,” from Latin “quietus,” at rest. To be disquieted is literally to be un-rested — deprived of the inner stillness the word negates.
noun · /dis-KWY-uht/
A feeling of anxiety or restless unease.
What it names
The low hum of something being off — not panic, but a peace that won’t quite settle and a mind that won’t quite still.
Example
His unusually cheerful message only deepened her disquiet; it read like someone trying too hard to seem fine.
Related idea
Full anxiety can grip and escalate; disquiet is quieter and more chronic, a persistent ripple beneath the surface rather than a storm on it.